Digital Commons Network^™

Practical Applications Of Indetermsoft Set And Indetermhypersoft Set And Introduction To Treesoft Set As An Extension Of The Multisoft Set, Florentin Smarandache

Neutrosophic Sets and Systems

No abstract provided.

Single Valued Neutrosophic Kruskal-Wallis And Mann Whitney Tests, Mahmoud Miari, Mohamad Taher Anan, Mohamed Bisher Zeina

Neutrosophic Sets and Systems

No abstract provided.

Plasma Exchange In The Intensive Care Unit: A Narrative Review, Phillippe R. Bauer, Marlies Ostermann, Lene Russell, Chiara Robba, Sascha David, Bruno Ferreyro, Joan Cid, Pedro Castro, Nicole P. Juffermans, Luca Montini, Tasneem Pirani, Andry Van De Louw, Nathan Nielsen, Julia Wendon, Anne C. Brignier, Miet Schetz, Jan T. Kielsetin, Jeffrey L. Winters, Elie Azoulay, Nine-I Investigators

Pathology Research and Scholarship

In this narrative review, we discuss the relevant issues of therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) in critically ill patients. For many conditions, the optimal indication, device type, frequency, duration, type of replacement fluid and criteria for stopping TPE are uncertain. TPE is a potentially lifesaving but also invasive procedure with risk of adverse events and complications and requires close monitoring by experienced teams. In the intensive care unit (ICU), the indications for TPE can be divided into (1) absolute, well-established, and evidence-based, for which TPE is recognized as first-line therapy, (2) relative, for which TPE is a recognized second-line treatment (alone …

Docking Of Syk To Fcεri Is Enhanced By Lyn But Limited In Duration By Ship1, William K. Kanagy, Cédric Cleyrat, Mohamadreza Fazel, Shayna R. Lucero, Marcel P. Bruchez, Keith A. Lidke, Bridget S. Wilson, Diane S. Lidke

Pathology Research and Scholarship

The high-affinity immunoglobulin E (IgE) receptor, FcεRI, is the primary immune receptor found on mast cells and basophils. Signal initiation is classically attributed to phosphorylation of FcεRI β- and γ-subunits by the Src family kinase (SFK) Lyn, followed by the recruitment and activation of the tyrosine kinase Syk. FcεRI signaling is tuned by the balance between Syk-driven positive signaling and the engagement of inhibitory molecules, including SHIP1. Here, we investigate the mechanistic contributions of Lyn, Syk, and SHIP1 to the formation of the FcεRI signalosome. Using Lyn-deficient RBL-2H3 mast cells, we found that another SFK can weakly monophosphorylate the γ-subunit, …

Distance Estimates To Evolved Stars Using Infrared Emission And Verification And Validation Of The Plasma Code Empire, Brandon M. Medina

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

Gaining insight into the structure and dynamics of the Milky Way is important for understanding the universe on a large scale. Evolved stars on the Asymptotic Giant Branch are useful for studying the Milky Way because their emission is peaked in the infrared, where interstellar extinction effects are not as dominant. To further understand the physical properties of these objects like luminosity and investigate the Galaxy's structure, we need distance estimates. Obtaining distance estimates for these evolved stars via trigonometric parallax measurements is time-consuming, so infrared surveys studying Asymptotic Giant Branch stars can benefit from other distance estimate methods. In …

Grand Canyon National Park's Water Corridor: Water Supply, Water Quality, And Recharge Along The Bright Angel Fault, Brionna O'Connor

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Grand Canyon’s ‘water corridor’ includes the Transcanyon Pipeline that conveys water from Roaring Springs near the North Rim to Grand Canyon Village on the South Rim to provide water for the park’s 6.5 million annual visitors. Roaring Springs water has been used at the park and reclaimed at the South Rim Water Reclamation Plant since the 1970s. Our hypothesis is that the pipeline water infiltrates through faults and intermingles with the South Rim groundwater system. We use geochemical tracers to develop mixing models for these waters. Tracers considered are major ions, water isotopologues, radiogenic strontium, and pharmaceuticals. This study has …

Rock Climbing And Conservation In Land Management: Can They Coexist?, Marissa Heller

Geography ETDs

As participation in outdoor recreation is growing in the U.S., a dilemma is presented for conservation planners and land area managers who must manage the increasing demand for recreation while simultaneously working to protect species. Rock climbers and other outdoor recreationalists have asserted that a relationship exists between recreation and the conservation of public lands. However, mounting evidence suggests that rock climbing continues to cause a multitude of negative impacts to ecosystems. Here, I investigate the extent to which land management practices allow for rock climbing and conservation to coexist, and how it is that well developed plans protect ecologically …

Optical And Computational Methods For Detection And Quantification Of Protein-Protein Interactions Using Single-Molecule Localization Microscopy, David James Schodt

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

Interactions between proteins residing on or near the membranes of biological cells trigger many of the signaling cascades that facilitate the transmission of information between the exterior and the interior of the cell. Normal function of these protein-protein interactions (PPIs) is required for the healthy functioning of complex single- and multi-cellular organisms. Abnormalities involving these interactions are implicated in several diseases, such as the progression and treatment resistance of many forms of cancer. Understanding both the normal and abnormal behaviors of these interactions is necessary to improve our understanding of such diseases, which in turn can drive drug development for …

Ultrashort Pulse Laser Filamentation Electrical And Optical Diagnostic Comparison, James E. Wymer

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

Results presented here examine the effect of changing gas pressure on the radio frequency (RF) emissions of an ultrashort pulse laser filament plasma and how those emissions vary longitudinally in the laser focal region. We use a WR284 rectangular waveguide with a 1.5 cm hole that allows the beam through. A 3.2 GHz microwave signal is emitted in the waveguide, and signals are received through a waveguide-to-coax antenna connected to an HP8470B Schottky diode. By enabling and disabling the 3.2 GHz signal, we measure both the self-emitted RF from a USPL filament and subsequently the degree of attenuation a filament …

Machine Learning Model Comparison And Arma Simulation Of Exhaled Breath Signals Classifying Covid-19 Patients, Aaron Christopher Segura

Mathematics & Statistics ETDs

This study compared the performance of machine learning models in classifying COVID-19 patients using exhaled breath signals and simulated datasets. Ground truth classification was determined by the gold standard Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test results. A residual bootstrapped method generated the simulated datasets by fitting signal data to Autoregressive Moving Average (ARMA) models. Classification models included neural networks, k-nearest neighbors, naïve Bayes, random forest, and support vector machines. A Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) study was performed to determine if reducing signal features would improve the classification models performance using Gini Importance scoring for the two classes. The top 25% of …

Robust Uncertainty Quantification With Analysis Of Error In Standard And Non-Standard Quantities Of Interest, Zachary Stevens

Mathematics & Statistics ETDs

This thesis derives two Uncertainty Quantification (UQ) methods for differential equations that depend on random parameters: (\textbf{i}) error bounds for a computed cumulative distribution function (\textbf{ii}) a multi-level Monte Carlo (MLMC) algorithm with adaptively refined meshes and accurately computed stopping-criteria. Both UQ approaches utilize adjoint-based \textit{a posteriori} error analysis in order to accurately estimate the error in samples of numerically approximated quantities of interest. The adaptive MLMC algorithm developed in this thesis relies on the adjoint-based error analysis to adaptively create meshes and accurately monitor a stopping criteria. This is in contrast to classical MLMC algorithms which employ either a …

Gp-K: A Probabilistic Method For Hourly Day-Ahead Power Load Forecasting, Miguel A. Hombrados-Herrera

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

The elevated costs that incur power grid stakeholders due to forecasting errors in power load demand have created the need for forecasting methods that provide accurate predictions and allow for assessing the reliability of their predictions. This thesis proposes a probabilistic forecasting method for multi-step ahead forecasting.

In particular, it presents a probabilistic method to perform a 24-hours-ahead power load forecasting that arises as the combination of Gaussian Process regressors with NMF (nonnegative matrix factorization) and integrates the advantages of both methods. Instead of training 24 independent processes for each hour of the predicted day, this work proposes to factorize …

The Changing Urban Forest In Gallup, New Mexico: Contextualizing Urban Tree Programs And Planning Processes, Joseph A. Scala

Geography ETDs

Tree plantings are often proposed as a solution to a variety of urban problems. The purpose of this project is to investigate the historical formation of urban tree cover in Gallup, New Mexico, and the extent to which urban tree plantings can benefit areas with inequitable urban tree distribution. To do this, I employ a mixed methods approach that includes correlation analysis, historical analysis, and analysis of urban tree canopy change from 1972-2005. The findings from this study indicate that Gallup’s history of tree plantings is heavily influenced by its history of economic development. Additionally, the findings demonstrate that if …

Development Of A Measure Of Physical Distancing: The O'Sickey Distancing Test, Anthony J. O'Sickey

Psychology ETDs

Introduction: Covid-19 has swept the globe and has disproportionately affected the United States with over 600,000 deaths in just over one year. The Centers for Disease Control recommendations for reducing the spread of Covid-19 have focused on physical distancing (PD), the practice of maintaining a distance greater than 6 feet from individuals not in the same household. When employed, this health behavior has been found to reduce the incidence of Covid-19. A review of the measurement literature evaluating PD indicates that PD has been measured at the community level via GPS, using proxy measures of the behavior, or as a …

Control Mechanisms For Adaptive Nanoscale Devices, David Arredondo

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Nanotechnology promises to revolutionize many areas of applied science including materials, synthetic biology, and medicine. Devices may consist of solution-phase information processing systems or molecular robots. Of particular interest are DNA-based systems due to their composability and relatively simple interactions that are suited to bottom-up design. This work introduces high-level designs of robust control mechanisms for nanoscale devices with immediate applications in molecular computing, synthetic biology, and DNA robotics.

Nanoscale systems are dominated by probabilistic chemical behavior, so engineers must take careful consideration to produce predictable systems. Probabilistic behavior in chemical reaction networks (CRNs) yields deterministic evolution of species concentrations …

The Health And Socioeconomic Burdens Of Air Pollution And Public Preference For Air Quality Improvement, Niraj Khatiwada

Economics ETDs

This dissertation consists of five chapters on air pollution. Chapter 1 discusses the issue of air pollution in two regions in South Asia: the Hindu-Kush Himalayan (HKH) Region and the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP). Chapter 2 builds on the canonical health production function model to investigate the heterogeneity in air pollution exposure and health outcome using data from Siddharthanagar municipality of Nepal. I use a novel approach of directly measuring individual lung functions to assess respiratory health conditions. The findings reveal lower lung functions among outdoor workers and individuals from households residing near prominent local pollution sources. The use of exposure …

Alterations In Executive Functioning Following Moderate Prenatal Alcohol Exposure: New Translational Insights, Sarah L. Olguin

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

While the lifelong difficulties that result from alcohol exposure in utero are well documented, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) remain the most common neurodevelopmental syndrome. FASD patients struggle with executive control including attention, cognitive control, reward learning, and impulsivity. These self-regulation problems contribute to increased rates of school expulsion, incarceration, and substance use disorders. However, it is still unclear how prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) affects executive control processes that lead to inappropriate behavior later in life. Here we examined the effect of PAE on 4 aspects of executive functioning paired with intervention or with translatable EEG-like recording, 1) control over …

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic And The Digital Divide On Public Education In New Mexico, Robert Christner

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

The digital divide and digital equity have long been a concern for educators, and public schools. In 2020 when the COVID-19 global pandemic swept across the country, public schools closed for in person classes and moved to a new paradigm of online only classes, issues of digital equity and the digital divide became a critical focus for families and young learners seeking to continue their academic progress. New Mexico with its low population density, rural nature and lack of infrastructure was particularly vulnerable to issues of digital equity when public schools moved to online only classes. This study investigates the …

Atomic Gradiometry Based On The Interference Of Microwave Optical Sidebands, Kaleb L. Campbell

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

We describe a novel pulsed magnetic gradiometer based on the optical interference of sidebands generated using two spatially separated alkali vapor cells. The sidebands are produced with high efficiency using parametric frequency conversion of a probe beam interacting with Rubiduim 87 atoms in a coherent superposition of magnetically sensitive hyperfine ground states. First, experimental evidence of the sideband process is described for both steady-state and pulsed operation. Then, a theoretical framework is developed that accurately models sideband generation based on density matrix formalism. The gradiometer is then constructed using two spatially separated vapor cells, and a beat-note is generated. The …

Art As Experience: A Case For Art Museum Field Trips In New Mexico’S Public School Art Education, Zoila A. Caamaño-Pumarol

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Since 2011, multiple studies have found that school field trips to art museums and other cultural institutions produce measurable improvements in standardized test scores, academic engagement, and substantial improvements across a range of factors including empathy, critical thinking skills, and creativity. These findings are especially prominent with children in rural areas, from low-income families, and non-Native English speakers. Nevertheless, the priorities in U.S. public education have shifted away from field trips and art education since the 1980s.

In this case study licensed art teachers in the New Mexico K to 12 public schools shared their experiences, discussed the obstacles they …

Fiesta And Shock-Driven Flows, Brian E. Romero

Mechanical Engineering ETDs

In this study, the interaction of a shock with various gas and particle interfaces is analyzed through simulations using a new, GPU capable, multi-species flow solver, FIESTA (Fast, Interface Evolution, Shocks, and Transport in the Atmosphere), de- veloped for this research. The cases studied include the interaction between a shock and i) a two-dimensional (2D), circular cloud of a dense gas; ii) a 2D curtain of a dense gas; iii) a three-dimensional (3D) cylinder of a dense gas, and iv) a 3D curtain of solid particles.

In simulations of a 2D gas curtain and a 3D gas column, the curtain …

Physiologically-Based Pharmacokinetics Modeling Of Colloidal Nanoparticles, Anh-Dung Le

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Physiologically-based Pharmacokinetics (PBPK) modeling—a mechanistic mathematical tool to predict biodistribution to inform drug development, requires knowledge of the physico-chemical properties of the drug in question as well as the anatomy and physiology of the organism. Unlike with molecular drugs, nanoparticle parameters often need to be estimated by fitting models to time-course data, which can result in large uncertainties in parameter estimates due to a high-dimensional parameter space. Our research addresses this challenge by offering a path to parameter insights using global sensitivity analysis. The first chapter is an overview of the PBPK model structure and mathematical framework used in our …

Computational, Synthetic And Spectroscopic Studies On Donor Acceptor Transition Metal Complexes, Ranjana Dangi

Chemistry and Chemical Biology ETDs

Fundamental advances in our ability to design and construct electronic components at the nanoscale will require new design paradigms. One proposed nanoscale electronic component is the molecular rectifier. Molecular and molecule-based electronic components are advantageous due to their ease of synthetic manipulation, and the fact that the size dimensions of molecules are inherently at the nanoscale (0.5 - 3nm). Our group has shown how the Donor-Bridge-Acceptor biradical approach can be used to derive key structure-property relationships that allow insight into the choice of bridge fragments for molecular rectification by using constitutional isomers of the donor-bridge-acceptor biradical (NN-Th-Py-SQ) (S=1/2 ortho-semiquinonate, …

Joining Of Candidate Materials For Lead-Cooled Fast Reactors, Brandon M. Bohanon

Nuclear Engineering ETDs

The lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR) is a fourth-generation reactor design characterized by high temperatures, neutron dosage, and highly corrosive and erosive environment due to high flow velocities. Therefore, materials testing must be performed to find structural and system components that withstand this harsh environment. These candidate alloys must have high-temperature creep strength, resistance to damage from fast-spectrum neutrons, and must grow protective oxide layers. FeCrAl alloys have been identified as possessing all these qualities, however, there are limitations due to erosion and the joining of these materials. In this work, mechanical and microstructural properties of base and conventionally joined FeCrAl-based …

A Study On Electromagnetic Topology Optimization Using Binary Particle Swarm Algorithm, Mohammad Sazzad Hossain

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Topology optimization is a state-of-the-art tool for detecting the best material layout in a physical space to obtain certain goals. Initially developed as a structural engineering tool, it has been recently used in electromagnetics and has shown immense potential. The aim of this work is to build a framework for applying the topology optimization method in electromagnetics using a modified binary particle swarm optimization (BPSO) algorithm. In this thesis, a very classic problem of coax to waveguide transition has been considered, and a novel solution has been given using topology optimization. The steps to implementing topology optimization using BPSO have …

Stochastic Optimal Shared Control With Non-Gaussian Processes, Paul Onor

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

In this paper, we propose an approach for shared control of a planar quadrotor that allows for non-Gaussian disturbance in the model and non-Gaussian variation in the pilot's control actions. We do this by constructing empirical characteristic functions for the state, inputs, and disturbance using demonstrations by a human expert. These are then used to make predictions of future states and of the system disturbance, using the first and second moments of the empirical characteristic function to estimate the mean and variance of these processes. With this method, we can extend assumptions from additive white Gaussian noise to any real-valued …

Human-Centered Avalanche Susceptibility Mapping, Lindsey L. Rotche

Geography ETDs

With backcountry winter travel increasing in popularity, the importance of accessible avalanche safety information is crucial. Widely accessible avalanche backcountry maps use slope shading to show where avalanches are likely to start. Instead of focusing on the hazard of an avalanche starting in a specific location, this project shifted the cartographic emphasis of avalanche susceptibility maps to show risk to a human traveling in the terrain. I developed a methodology to incorporate possible avalanche runouts, terrain traps, and connected slopes while reducing false certainty of the visualization. To provide a more comprehensive representation of susceptible terrain, I integrated aspect, distance …

The Effects Of A Power Iteration-Based K-Eigenvalue Solver For Various Subcritical Parameters And Calculations, Daniel H. Timmons

Nuclear Engineering ETDs

The need to simulate subcritical benchmark parameters quickly and accurately is becoming increasing important. When using Monte Carlo methods this is traditionally done using a fixed-source calculation where a particle and its progeny are tracked until their removal from the system. This method can be slow for near critical systems. The use of a k-eigenvalue solver could reduce the computational footprint and reduce the need to post process data.

This is done for four parameters from the ICSBEP benchmark values: R_1 , R_2 , M_L, and M_eff. These parameters are calculated in two new distinct ways. First, is directly …

Effect Of Phylogeny Misestimation On Estimating Trait Evolution Parameters, Tabytha Ariel Perez

Mathematics & Statistics ETDs

Biologists are interested in estimating trait evolution models from phylogenies. However, phylogenies are imperfectly estimated, generally from DNA sequence data. In this study, true phylogenies are simulated to understand whether errors in phylogeny estimation affect inference of the trait evolution model. Given the tree, DNA sequences as well as traits are then simulated from the true phylogeny; both are simulated independently from the other. After the simulation, the DNA sequences were used to estimate trees using the UPGMA method without utilizing the trait information. The estimated trees combined with the traits are used to infer the evolutionary trait models, specifically …

Halogen And Non-Traditional Isotope Geochemistry Of Planetary And Terrestrial Materials, Anthony Gargano, Zachary Sharp, Justin Simon, Charles Shearer, Adrian Brearley, James Day

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

This dissertation presents the advances in non-traditional isotope geochemistry of planetary and terrestrial materials encompassing chlorine, sulfur, and zinc isotopes, as well as halogen geochemistry. A wide breadth of materials was studied throughout the completion of this work including iron meteorites, achondrites, chondrites, Apollo lunar samples, as well ancient marine chert, and carbonate sediments. Much of the focus involved the development of a method capable of simultaneously measuring the halogen contents and chlorine isotope compositions of geological materials. Here, I present these data sets to broadly characterize the process of devolatilization of planetary materials, and specifically the problem of ‘halogen-poisoning’ …